Updated: Orange seeks to link mobile, PC and TV

Orange has teamed up with social networking sites on a service it hopes will bring "communities together across all three screens: mobile, PC and TV".

The company, which has previously stated it will launch an IPTV service in the UK during 2008, has integrated MySpace, Facebook, Bebo and others into its Orange World web portal in France. It plans to follow suit in other markets, including the UK.

"Orange plans to evolve the service from Orange World to an embedded application, accessible from the home screen of Orange Signature phones," said a statement. "The ultimate goal is to bring these communities together across all three screens: mobile, PC and TV."

Paul-Francois Fournier, a senior vice president at the company, added: "At Orange, we are committed to giving over 170m customers the best and most user-friendly multimedia experience possible, whether on the mobile, the Web or IPTV."

Orange has a well-developed TV service in France and has been working with Red Bee Media to develop an IPTV offering for the UK, though little has been heard of the plan in recent months.